Over The River and Through The Woods

Last night Jake slept over my parents NC house so today being Family day we headed over to Randleman for some fun and dinner and to fetch Jake. Before we got there they discovered a place with walking trails not too far from their house so Jake anxiously waited for us to arrive so they could take us there. So all of us plus E and P and their dogs headed over to this park. We started walking on the trail which is alongside a river. The kids were excited because there were plenty of ducks to feed but first Jake and my mom wanted to show us something they found in the woods. We kept walking deeper into the woods where we got to see what they found, deer legs. No body, just legs. The rest of us wondered how and why they went so far into the woods to find the legs. My dad said, "When we start finding body parts, it's time to go home." We headed back and planned to feed some ducks on the way to the cars. The ducks didn't seem very hungry so we decided to climb across the rocks in the river. This started off fine until the dogs jumped into the river and onto the rocks and the rocks became slippery. We carefully climbed from rock to rock. Then a bird crapped on me. This should have been good luck but it was just the start of our bad luck. As we hoisted kids from rock to rock we tried to avoid the wet dogs as it was quite chilly today. Next thing we know Makayla falls into the river. I pull her out but not quick enough b/c she is soaked and crying. Poor kid, I couldn't stop laughing mostly from shock. It was all in slow motion. People passing us were just looking at us weird. I know they were thinking, "Stupid Northerners!" We did have a good time though and the kids did ask to go back again. That's all that counts.

Going To The Chapel And We're Gonna Get Married

9 years ago at this time we were newlyweds, dancing the night away at Portabella's. Where does time go? I wouldn't trade my wedding day for anything (although I could have done without Jason's broken finger). We had such a great time. 3 kids later and we're still having fun.

Jake says he'll never get married and that he will live with mom forever. Taylor has different plans, she says she is going to marry Jake (I told her we moved south but not that far south). Makayla wants to marry Dylan across the street who is 10 years old.

So much has happened in 9 years. We had kids, we moved, started a new business. Before we know it the kids will be grown up. As Ferris Bueller said, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it."

Locks of Love

OK. I finally did it. I chopped 14 inches of hair off my head.

Cute Thank You Note

Jake came home with this card from school today. It's so cute and thoughtful of his class to make this.

Happy Halloween

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Random Stuff

Last week was a busy week for us. Between soccer and school activities I just couldn't find the time to write. Here's a brief recap. The kids and I made Halloween sugar cookies and decorated them. I put the decorated cookies too close together on the cookie sheet so they became one big cookie by the time they came out of the oven but they still tasted good. Jake had his class trip to go panning for gold and visit the quarry. It was a nice trip although it was very cold. After panning we went to Jamestown Park for lunch and play. Later that night Jake had his 1st tournament soccer game, which he won. The next day the kids wanted to paint the pumpkins that they got at the school pumpkin patch. They had a fun time. My mother and brother came into town so they were over to visit. Jarett hasn't seen the kids since July so they were all happy to see each other. We discovered the aerobic hula hoop game on the Wii. Video games are addicting. When everyone left and the kids went to bed I tried to beat the high scores in all of the games. I'm still working on it. I shouldn't play any kind of electronic games that give out daily stamps. I feel bad for the game when I miss a day so I make myself crazy trying to complete the games for the day. Ever try brain age? That's one of my addictions. Then there is my pet Stella on Facebook. God forbid I forget to feed her. I'll wake up in the middle of the night afraid she will die and I will not collect my 200 puppy points. I know I'm weird. Remember those key chain pets? Mine was alive so long it just expired. It couldn't get any older. Anyway, Sunday we carved our pumpkins. This is always a fun activity for the kids. Basically they pull all of the guts out of the pumpkin and Jason and I carve them. Then we headed to Randleman for my dad's birthday celebration. This is the kid’s favorite place to go. They get to see Grandma and Grandpa and run around until they can't run anymore. Last night they got to sleep over which is the ultimate treat for them. Jake was a tiny bit disappointed that his sisters were staying too but they all had a good time. I had Jake's teacher conference this morning (Monday). He had an excellent report card. I can't believe the things he learns in 1st grade. This week he will start having timed math tests. He must complete 50 addition problems in 2 1/2 minutes. This is hard. I know because it is a game on Brain Age. Later on this evening we have our playgroup’s Halloween party and then Jake has his 2nd tournament game. Hopefully we won’t freeze again. Well that was our week in a nutshell.

Just A Glimpse Of Our Week

This week Taylor had her 1st school field trip. They went to a farm where they learned about apples and how to make cider. Then they took a hayride and went to a pumpkin patch. It was a fun day and it was great to see Taylor interacting with her friends. I was worried about how she would behave with me there but she was on her best behavior. I think this is attributed to the banning of Max in our house. Max is the brother bunny off the cartoon Max & Ruby. A friend told me about how Max behaves on the show by demanding the things he wants using one word commands. Something Taylor has been doing a lot. So Max is out.

Jake had his last soccer game Thursday night (or so I thought) but I found out he has tournament games now. Jake has been playing goalie for his team. I think it’s more stressful for me than it is for him. His team consists of 6, 7, & 8 year olds so he is one of the young ones. When a big 8 year old is coming at him about to kick the ball I feel like pulling him out of the way to protect him. It’s very hard to watch but he loves playing.

Today Taylor had a soccer game where she actually played and didn’t stand around like a statue. I did bribe her with M & M’s if she touched the ball just once. After lunch we baked pumpkin bread and then had a hot chocolate tea party. Then we played a game that Taylor got for her birthday. All and all we had a pretty quiet week compared to most.